From Hashtag to Healing: Exploring Mental Health Support in Academic Twitter Networks

This study explores the dynamics of #AcademicTwitter, investigating user connectivity and mental health attributes amidst pre-COVID-19 societal pressures and the subsequent pandemic onset. Analyzing key actors, we find that institutions and content-driven accounts are more prominent figures in shaping the discourse within this hashtag highlighting a larger role in community engagement. Language analysis reveals stable stress and wellbeing markers but fluctuating motivation markers, notably during pandemic-affected months. Central actors bridge information dissemination with addressing academia’s mental health needs with many using humor and satire to alleviate stress. Our findings suggest that academics used #AcademicTwitter’s online community to communicate, oftentimes with humor, and find mental health support through the pandemic and shortly thereafter.